


A Beginner's Guide to Reading Biology

by Arutyh



Series: Shards of Knowledge, Lullabies of Emotion [2]
Category: Yu-Gi-Oh! Zexal
Genre: Aged-Up Character(s), Alien Romance, Alien/Human Relationships, Developing Relationship, First Time, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Friendship/Love, Future, M/M, Post-Canon, Post-Season/Series Finale, Romance, Slice of Life, Smut, Soulmates, Young Adults, Yu-Gi-Oh! - Freeform, Zexal - Freeform, keyshipping - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-12
Updated: 2020-11-04
Packaged: 2021-03-04 00:40:51
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 14
Words: 19,179
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24674761
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Arutyh/pseuds/Arutyh
Summary: It's been five years since the Barian and Astral Worlds fused together, with many hardships and battles that have been fought along the way...But now, life is peaceful. With no dangers threatening either world, Astral has rejoined Yuma on Earth. It's everything Yuma could have ever asked for!However, now that he's older, Yuma's feelings towards his other half have changed, in ways that... he's not sure Astral would understand even if Yuma explained it to him. Should he hide them? But they agreed not to keep secrets from each other...Either way, these feelings will pass... right?
Relationships: Astral & Tsukumo Yuuma, Astral/Tsukumo Yuuma
Series: Shards of Knowledge, Lullabies of Emotion [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1914532
Comments: 26
Kudos: 86
Collections: Zexal Month





	1. First Twilight

“Yuma.”

“Huh?” I looked up from the cards in my hands to see that Astral was observing me with an air of inquisitiveness. Glancing towards the television I realized a run-of-the-mill commercial was playing, one which I knew Astral had seen several times by now. That would explain why he probably picked up on my absent-mindedness.

He leaned towards me and tilted his head to look at the cards I was holding, then back up to meet his eyes with my own, “Interesting, have you perhaps figured out a new combo with these cards? This XYZ, Gagagaga Magician, definitely has potential.”

“Ah, well,” I said with a slight chuckle, doing my best to stay relaxed despite how close he was, what with the two of us sitting together on the attic floor side by side. It was admittedly difficult to hide the few times I’d get flustered around Astral, especially considering how many years it’s been now since we’ve known each other. “Yeah, it seems like when paired with Future Drive there’s potential to do massive damage to the opponent’s life points.” My brows furrowed while looking at the cards in question, “But, I’m not really sure what to take out from our deck to be able to fit it in…”

Astral brought his hand up against his chin in thought, “It would seem that we have a lot of new options at our disposal. Putting everything in without a moment's hesitation could hurt the chances of us drawing the cards we need. Let us see here…”

I could feel my skin heat up as Astral’s body leaned against my own, his chin resting against my shoulder in order to see the various cards in my hands. He continued, “Take out two of Double-Up Chance, I suspect one will be enough since we have Utopia Double to search it. Gagagarevenge is probably sufficient at two, so that gives room for one more card to add from those in your hand. For this combo here-”

It was taking a ridiculous amount of effort to pay attention to Astral’s advice, considering all the while I could feel my blood rushing through me with the accelerated beating of my heart.

Just have to relax, everything’s fine. No worlds are in danger, Eliphas gave Astral the A-OK to stay here. It’s just the last remnants of late puberty at work here, after that everything will go back to norm-

“So, how does that sound? We can do some testing draws to see how that works out,” Astral looked back towards me with a soft, expectant smile playing on his face. Our lips were only inches away from each other, and it occurred to me that I could feel his breath on my heated cheek. In hindsight, considering I was able to breathe just fine when in the Astral World, it makes sense that citizens of that world breathed as well. However, my awe at this realization manifested a bit more physically than I would have liked…

“Uh, yeah, we can certainly try all that out in a bit!” I stuttered out while hastily setting the cards down, shifting myself away from Astral and towards the stairs, “I just gotta run to the bathroom for a few minutes. It’ll be quick!” I barely gave Astral the chance to respond before I was already halfway to my destination.

After making sure to lock the door and checking to confirm that my suspicions were indeed true, a rough, exasperated sigh escaped my throat. Out of all the troubles that puberty had brought with it, never would I had expected that a budding sex drive would be the most problematic of them all. And that’s coming from someone who experienced a growth spurt more painful than when I fell off a cliff…

Grabbing a handful of toilet paper, I went to take care of the “issue”.

A part of me had grown used to this routine by now; chilling out with Astral, just the two of us in my room, then something… pretty ordinary will happen, and without warning my body will just react this way. Temperature rising, heart pounding, and sometimes pants becoming taut, like what had happened just now. Akari once described to me what a crush is like when I was younger, but I know that what I feel for Astral isn’t as simple as that.

It’s like, he unknowingly controls my heart in a way; he holds every ounce of my trust. With it, he could destroy me in a second or empower me to new heights. That experience, it’s such a vulnerable sensation but it’s what allowed us to initiate Zexal in the first place. Unfortunately, Astral has stated that it’s dangerous to perform Zexal casually, so it’s been ages since we last had to use it.

I can’t help but miss the sensation Zexal brought with it, though. The two of us physically merged, inside of the other, and in perfect synchronization with each others’ thoughts and movements. If that Greek legend that Dad told me about where humans having once been two beings in one holds any truth to it, I’d imagine that’s what it would have felt like.

But… Astral isn’t human, and these urges that my body keeps having are all _too_ human. I don’t want him to think that he has to force himself to do anything, _especially_ anything he barely understands, just for my own gratification. Besides, Akari said that eventually, these urges will die down, so until then I just gotta wait them out.

Even if, there are so many things I want to do with… _him_ …

I heard his name escape from my lips as a pained whisper with that last thought passing through my mind. The deed had been done.

Cleaning up and tossing away whatever evidence of my ordeal remained, upon leaving the bathroom I barely noticing a blue light in the corner of my eye while I made my way back to my room.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (Obligatory: To that one person on Reddit, I thank you for enlightening me to the fact that, even if there aren't many in 2020, there are still fellow keyshippers out there. Bless your heart.)
> 
> This is the first *true* fanfiction I've ever written. I've written several personal stories with OCs, but this is my first time adapting pre-existing characters and putting said story into writing. Early warning that this story may sway back and forth on the edge between Mature and Explicit, but generally the story is going to be focused on relatively believable interactions between characters and not just "I'm always in attack mode ( ͡º ͜ʖ ͡º)" if you get my drift. 
> 
> Keep in mind that, as someone with a fair share of uh, "research" done regarding all things keyshipping, I'm all too aware of how easy it'd be to just give Astral a surprise hole™ to explain how a human and alien can do the sex stuff. But I don't like taking the easy route and I'm of the firm stance that since it's been made clear in the sub that Astral is male (what with pronouns), it'd feel cheap to go and do something like that. So instead I'm going with the most "canon explanation" that my 20-something-year-old mind can come up with, even if it's a tad... unconventional.
> 
> I'm not a fast writer, and worse, I crave perfection, so it may take time between chapters. But let this be my gift to you, fellow present-day keyshippers! I hope you accept it. (シ_ _)シ
> 
> Also stay safe during this pandemic, yo.


	2. First Twilight

A couple hours of test draws later, we decided to pack it in for the night and get some sleep. The old hammock I had previously got too small for me after my growth spurt, but thankfully for my eighteenth birthday Mom and Dad sent me a bigger one that they found in Venezuela. It’s not quite the same feeling as sleeping in my old hammock but considering I don’t just randomly fall out of this new one it’s saved me from a good number of bruises.

Plus, now that Astral doesn’t need to rest inside the Emperor’s Key as much due to the lack of interdimensional threats draining his energy, the fact that there’s enough room for him as well is nice too! Though… I generally need to beat one out before heading to bed to ensure Astral’s presence doesn’t, well, elicit any rises in my libido…

While laying there, I let out a frustrated exhale from remembering when the two of us use to just casually share the hammock together when I was younger, eventually one of us (me) falling asleep with not a care in the world. None of that weird hormonal stuff getting in the way then.

It _will_ pass, right?

Whatever. With my thoughts trailing off and my breathing slowing down, I felt the calm embrace of sleep wash over me.

“Yuma?”

Damn it. Guess not. “What’s up, Astral?” I groggily opened my eyes halfway, but when I could focus in enough to perceive Astral’s expression, all remnants of sleep up and vanished from my mind.

As his eyes locked with mine, the furrowing of his brow-like markings was enough to tell me of his growing concern, “Recently, have you been harmed or ill in any way?”

I let out a “Huh?” from my obvious confusion at his question. “No, I’m…” In hindsight saying I’m fine would be a blatant lie. “I’m not hurt or anything. What makes you think that?”

Astral’s lips pursed together, his words chosen carefully, “I’ve become aware of your increased need to use your bathroom as of late. You don’t seem to be eating more or intaking more fluids, which would normally explain such behaviour. Nor do you appear to be sick.”

I could already feel my face heat up at the thought of having to explain what’s going on. It didn’t help that I knew fully well he wasn’t even close to finishing analyzing his observations.

“There seemed to be some, though not much, correlation between these out-of-schedule bathroom visits and my presence. I didn’t assume that to be true at first, but earlier when you were in there again, I heard you speak out my name. Very faintly, but I knew that I definitely had heard it.”

Oh. Oh no... My only saving grace at the moment was the darkness of the attic hiding my severely flushed face. I never would have thought that I’d find myself wishing Astral had lost his memories a second time, but here we are, I guess.

“While you did explain to me before that it wasn’t true humans died when they’re seen in the bathroom, I remembered what you’d said regarding “privacy”. I wanted to respect this custom, and at that moment I did, but…” Astral’s eyes trailed down, “I’ve grown used to coming to your aid when you call out to me while in danger, Yuma. The way you said my name earlier, it… sounded as though you were suffering.”

I wiped away a few loose tears that had leaked out from both my embarrassment at this whole situation and how genuine Astral’s words were, letting out a light laugh to try and ease my discomfort in the process. My hand came up to give him a reassuring pat on the head, “I’m sorry, Astral. This whole thing isn’t something I’m used to either. It apparently happens when humans start becoming adults, and while it’s kinda annoying it’s not painful like when I started getting taller.”

While the look of concern which had plague’s Astral’s face was now long gone, one of mild confusion had replaced it instead, “But what exactly _is_ this thing that’s happening? And how is it that I’m seemingly related to it?”

My arm flinched away from his question, causing me to halt the head pats I was giving him. I should have known Astral would have wanted more answers than that, “Ah well, uh, pretty much I sometimes get the desire to um, touch myself while thinking of you.”

“…In what way?” Astral asked tentatively.

“Uhhh… well.” My nervousness prevented me from looking directly at him, “b-between my legs… but uh, that’s pretty much it, really.”

Astral went silent for a moment, his expression unreadable. It was… not often that I couldn’t tell what he was thinking. Steadily I felt my chest tighten in on itself while trying to predict what he might say. Finally, after what felt like halfway to forever, he spoke up, “…Tell me… if you want me to stop.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What's this? A second chapter so soon?! ...Yeah, don't get your hopes up about my writing speed. I'd already written just under 4k words, with about 3.5 chapters finished, so I'm really just doing final edits and posting what I have. I'll let you know when I reach the end of my pre-written stuff and should expect longer wait times between chapters.


	3. First Twilight

In an instance of stillness, I could hear my heart beating directly into my ears, “…Stop, _what_ exactly?”

Astral didn’t need to say anything, for after a slight movement under the covers I realized exactly what he meant. His fingertips brushed lightly against the front of my sweatpants, which immediately began feeling tight.

My body twitched in response to his touch and my breath stopped in my throat as Astral continued exploring the area with the delicate maneuvers of his hand. I instinctively brought my own hand up to cover my face, trying to prevent any whimpers from escaping. It wasn’t long before he found the obvious manifestation of my body’s excitement and proceeded to massage it gently through the fabric, making it even harder for me to stay quiet. I moved my hand away from my face to try and make it easier for me to breath, as Astral had decided to move his fingers under the waistband and wrap his hand directly around my shaft, eliciting short, quick moans from my end.

With my eyes no longer covered, I could now see just how focused Astral was, specifically towards reading my reactions and making sure he wasn’t doing anything that caused me pain. Just from his eyes, I could tell he was prepared to stop as soon as I asked him to.

But I couldn’t, I was too lost in the feeling to question it.

“A-Astral…”

“Yes, Yuma?”

“it… feels re- …ly good,” it took a lot more effort to say that than I initially thought, but I wanted him to know that, at the least, I wasn’t against what he was doing.

He let out a sigh of relief, a warm smile that lit up his eyes gracing his face. His voice even sweeter as he spoke, “…I’m happy to hear that.”

Oh. It was too much for me to bear. Wrapping my arms around him, I panted his name while burying my face into his shoulder, release finally taking hold of me.

Letting out deep, heavy breaths, my thoughts were spiralling in every direction like a waking fever dream. Does he know what a sexual relationship is? If so, is Astral trying to tell me that he wants to rank up our own relationship? Or does he just think he did something helpful for a friend? Do I even _want_ the answers to those questions?

In a moment of lucidity, I realized that despite what just happened, I didn’t feel any additional wetness on myself. Or my clothes. So where did…

Pulling my face away from Astral’s shoulder, I noticed that he was curiously inspecting the white substance which now covered his hand.

“Ah!! S-sorry about that, Astral! Hold on, I know there’s a box of tissues somewhere here,” leaning over the side of the hammock, I managed to find the box in question and grab hold of several of them before pulling myself back up. Taking hold of Astral’s hand, the two of us were both shocked to see the last of the substance was being absorbed _into_ his hand.

I really had no words for what I just saw, “Uh, Astral, what- did… did you intentionally do that?”

He returned my surprised expression, “No! This is, …wait.” He stared intently at his hand again, maybe a bit too intently given what just happened, “This… this substance is similar to a Number… Could it be essence perhaps…”

I think I had officially heard it all by this point. “ _Hah?!_ What in the world do you even mean by that?!”

Astral jerked back up to look at me as though my question had pulled him out of a deep trance. He stayed quiet for a moment too long, just staring directly at me. What sort of expression he was looking at me with I couldn’t say. Before I even had the chance to guess, his shoulders slumped slightly as his eyes fell to the side, avoiding my own, “...You recall how I once said that you’re akin to a piece of me; my other half, correct?”

“Yeah?”

He looked back at his hand, “This substance… holds its own form of memories. Biological information about yourself, and the evolutionary steps which resulted in the way that your body functions. I can’t do it in the same way that I can see the memories held within the Numbers, but I can read it, understand it. The fact that you’re a part of me is likely some of the reason why I can integrate it so easily inside of me.”

I still never completely understood how Astral came to the conclusion that I was the other half of him that broke off during his first duel with Don Thousand. Especially considering how long ago that was compared to when I was even born. But considering what we’ve been able to do through Zexal, I’m inclined to believe him. Maybe a piece of him kept getting passed down from generation to generation, or it took a lot longer for that one piece to reach Earth compared to the first Numbers? I don’t know, but either of those would be my best guess. “So what makes you think it could be essence in that case?”

The slight drop in Astral’s mood from before was exceedingly apparent now, “…Back when I was possessed by darkness while in Sargasso, and you came all the way to apologize to me, there was a brief instance where tendrils shot out from my being, aimed directly for you. Those weren’t something that the Chaos had caused; I and other Astral beings are able to alter their body in subtle ways like what you saw then. Those sorts of tendrils are primarily used for directly sharing one’s emotions or “essence” as it’s called, with another.”

Tentatively, I nodded. Still, something seemed off with the way Astral was responding, “…And what… would have happened if you’d managed to strike me with one of them, way back then?” Astral visibly tensed as soon as I asked that. He almost looked like... maybe the memory alone would make him cry? “Ah-! you don’t need to ans-”

Astral's voice was just barely above a whisper, but I heard him clearly, “I would have brought you down with me. Given you the same, corrupted desires that I had at that very moment... After we successfully formed Zexal once more, I-” I could have sworn Astral choked on his words in that instant. This wasn't like him at all. “-vowed to myself to never show that part of me in your presence again, in fear that seeing them would cause you to remember the painful memories from that day.”

Without even a second thought, I pulled Astral in for a hug when he finished speaking. I could see from the corner of my eye the slight smile on his lips as his arms wrapped around me in turn. We stayed like that wordlessly for a moment before I could tell he had relaxed again, even if mildly. Finally, I mustered up the courage to ask aloud, “…What would happen if you shared your essence with me now?”

“Eh?!” Astral pulled back enough to examine my face, his eyes wide from what I was insinuating. It took him a moment to formulate his answer, “You would be exposed to my current emotional state, but you would still have all the same freedoms to act as you normally would.”

I gave him one of the most encouraging smiles I could muster up, “In that case, so long as you don’t end up creating a new hole in me, I’m all for trying it out! If these tendrils or whatever are just a part of how you normally are then there’s no way I could dislike them, or you for that matter!”

Astral’s surprise was soon replaced by a genuine smile, “Very well, I’ll trust your words in that case.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Eeeeyep, there's that unconventionality I mentioned before. Astral can absorb Numbers, ZEXAL is technically just Astral and Yuma absorbing each other... Astral is apparently very sponge-like. ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯
> 
> Considering what's mentioned in the series about Astral beings pretty much being reincarnated humans, I don't see why they would have the ability to actually procreate. But if Astral World is technically Heaven, or at least a reflavoured version of the Buddhist version of Heaven in the cycle of rebirth, then it makes sense that they have a way to really understand another person's emotions for the sake of preventing conflict and keeping the place as "heavenly" as possible. 
> 
> In either case, the next chapter is going to take a bit longer to get out cause it's started but not finished.


	4. First Twilight

“Yuma, are you sure you want to try it _there?”_

“From what I’ve heard, it’s the one hole in the human body that’s the least dangerous to put things into, at least for guys. There is my mouth that we can try later, but for a first time I’d rather not accidentally start suffocating. Course if you could somehow control these things so that they went through me like when we first met, we’d have better options.” 

We were both down in my room, seated on my bed. I figured that no matter how sturdy the hammock in the attic might be, I trusted a flat, stable mattress in a wide-open room much more than some hanging cloth in a cramped attic. Especially when it came down to… whatever was about to happen, I guess.

Astral shook his head, “No, I was never able to control that. I suspect that resulted from both the strength of our bond as well as the amount of Numbers we’d collected.”

I tilted my head while looking at him, “Despite having all your memories back you never figured that out?”

He casually shrugged, “The people of the Astral World have no drive to explore other worlds, resulting in limited information on how our bodies interact in other places. I’m one of the few Astral citizens to have been to Earth, and the only one to have spent this much time here. You’re the one citizen of Earth I can physically touch, but you’re also an anomaly due to being a part of myself.”

Crossing my arms, I nodded, “Well, we’ll work with what we’ve got in that case.”

Astral nodded in return, the corners of his mouth rising slightly, “Then I’ll be sure to make this experience as enjoyable, and without harm, as possible for you.”

“Heh, thanks,” I said with a nervous chuckle. Our eyes locked once more. 

_Was this… really going to happen?_

Laying myself down, Astral followed my lead and rested his body above my own. I gave him an affirmative nod, even if my breathing gave away how anxious I was. My sweatpants, and the rest of the clothes I previously had on, were now long since discarded to give him the best access for what was to come. 

Astral brought his hand down to ease the hole I told him about between my legs. If I didn't know any better, I would have thought he had previous experience doing this sort of thing with how smoothly one of his slim fingers slipped inside me. Just when I started getting used to the first one, I felt a second finger join the first.

_This whole situation, it… it almost seemed like we were…_

From Astral's lithe body sprouted wisp-like tendrils that seemed to weightlessly swim through the air towards me, coiling themselves around my legs. I couldn't help but be fascinated by these things. Their movements were just so alluring and graceful, not unlike how Astral himself moved. Except, their movement wasn't restrained by bones or joints, which I could only guess Astral possessed. In short time, one of the tendrils made its way to my backside and took the place of Astral’s fingers. It admittedly didn't feel so bad at first, until the tendril went much, much deeper than I could have expected.

I gasped from the bizarre sensation the tendril brought with it as it explored inside me. It flowed in and out like a slow, gentle current of water, and was just as wet if I had to guess. The tendrils on the outside of my body seemed to glide around my now goosebumped skin with calculated movements. Their cool touch was certainly succeeding in distracting me from the unfamiliar sensation going on in my ass, but just what was Astral trying to do exactly? The rest of him was hardly moving, and it almost seemed as though Astral was waiting for something as he continued to keep his calm gaze on me.

What followed wasn’t necessarily a physical sensation that occurred, but gradually I began to feel exactly what was happening. While not quite as structured as when Astral and I would telepathically speak with each other, but somehow what occurred conveyed more than simple words. 

A heartbeat, no, more like the crashing of waves with my feet planted firmly in the sand. Curiosity, uncertainty, ebbing and flowing around me. The water’s impulse to submerge, but the restraint to border. So much force and energy behind each surge, yet gentle all the same. 

It was comforting, and nostalgic in a way...

I see now. This water, these emotions... they’re Astral’s. These sensations are not unlike when we would experience Zexal. Though, his emotions are a bit more chaotic than I remembered. Is it because he read my body’s… information earlier? 

The initial flood of emotions died down enough that I could perceive my surroundings again. A light amount of sweat covered my body now, but strangely I felt more relaxed than before.

I noticed the tendrils were nearly motionless, and Astral was examining me closely with a slight air of unease, his hand hesitant to touch my face, “Are you alright, Yuma?”

“I’m fine,” I reassured him. While I knew Astral was confused about them himself; I understood these emotions he shared with me perfectly. Damn it, it would be nice to be able to share my own emotions for him so easily. Though, he said what he absorbed from me earlier was similar. Perhaps… “What I felt just now, is this what you experienced? When you went quiet before.”

He nodded, “The reaction is almost identical, but the information you shared was a bit different. I can now say I know why your face goes red, and why your heart beats faster when I’m near you. Your body reacts this way when seeing someone attractive, in the hopes of being able to copulate with them.”

I suppose that's one way to put it. Taking hold of Astral's hand, I brought it against my warm cheek, “You know I only get this way around _you_ , right?”

He smiled, “I know.”

We were already this far in, may as well ask. “Is that… something you'd want to try?”

“I’m not against the prospect, but I wouldn’t know where to start.”

Pulling Astral close, my steadily warming skin contrasted with the soothing temperature of his own body, “Do you want to explore these feelings together then? I’m not exactly experienced in this sort of thing either.”

“As in we’d be learning this together, you mean?” he asked, his cheek now resting on my collarbone.

I chuckled, “Yeah, pretty much.”

Astral softly replied while leaning his face against my neck, “I'd like that.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Initially, I expected the main sex scene to appear in this chapter, but while writing I got some suggestions from a fellow writer which changed my plans a bit. 
> 
> Essentially, I asked how to write "an alien in a romantic relationship with a human", and they suggested that I go with the idea of a first relationship but en max. From that, I realized that neither Astral nor Yuma would be the type to jump headfirst into sex without knowing the other was 100% okay with it (insert "they're both bottoms" joke here). One could make arguments for either of the two being the first to initiate; Astral being a bit naive about the implications of the actions and Yuma being the risktaker of the two. But it's pretty damn clear in the series that they both care for the other's safety to an immense degree, even if in Yuma's case he tries to be very tsundere about it. As a result, this chapter became more of a spotlight of Astral's emotion-sharing ability rather than, well, sex. 
> 
> In the wise old words of Mr. Incredible, "We get there when we get there!"
> 
> Plus this allows for more Astral and Yuma being wholesome together moments, which you'll have to pull from my cold, dead hands before anyone dare tries to take those away from me.


	5. First Twilight

With the room’s walls cloaked in gentle shadows, and not a single sound from beyond their border sneaking in, I might’ve believed that the passage of time had abandoned this room. Nothing was moving, nothing was changing. No signs of life to be found anywhere.

It was only Astral and myself. 

Using my hand to tilt his head closer to my own, and burning Astral’s face into my memory for the millionth time, I closed my eyes as our lips made contact.

In doing so, something… clicked between us. 

It was as though we’d never experienced the sensation of touch before this instant. Astral practically glued our bodies together, his lips letting out a soft moan from the new sensation. The tendrils coiling in and around me were reinvigorated with newfound energy. I felt my spine instinctually arch forward, every inch of my body desperate to be in contact with Astral. 

It was such a specific need neither of us even knew we had till now. And we were desperate to make up for lost time.

In order to not to end the kiss early, I mentally asked Astral if he could open his mouth. Without even breaking rhythm he obliged. 

I let my tongue caress past his parted lips, giving Astral the chance to see whether he liked the feeling or not, however, his tongue eagerly joined my own before I knew it. Realizing my caution was unnecessary, my excitement swelled. 

The caressing of the tendrils across my skin could have been mistaken for Astral's fingers were it not for the fact one of his hands was intertwined with my own, the other was likewise tilting my head to deepen the kiss. 

I could sense Astral's enthusiasm both physically and internally, for the steady stream of his essence continued to flow into me. Like a rippling effect, the stimulation from both ends magnified the thrill. With so many sensations going on at once I was getting delirious. I don't think anyone alive can say they've experienced something quite like this. 

Not even a moment after my mind started blanking out, I felt the grip of the tendrils begin to loosen, and heard Astral’s voice speak through my thoughts; _Need to breathe._ Despite my attempting to do as he asked, you’d think we were trying to separate industrial magnets with the difficulty it took just to end the kiss. It didn’t help that the tendrils had been binding us together so thoroughly.

Once separated, Astral hovered above me again, the two of us taking a lengthy moment to catch our breath. Afterwards, I managed to speak up, “We… should probably avoid doing that too often.”

In spite of being in a slight daze, Astral brought two of his fingers up to examine his lips, “...I see. Until now I wasn’t aware of how sensitive I am there.” 

While I didn’t want either of us to pass out from lack of air, whatever that reaction was… was addicting. I propped myself up on my elbows, “Do you know where else you might be sensitive?”

He pursed his lips in thought, sitting himself up, “Most of the times I’ve been susceptible to feelings of touch was from our more severe duels. The areas around my embellishments were always more prone to feeling pain.”

“Embellish-...? Oh, the jewels embedded in your skin.”

“And the markings,” Astral corrected, pointing to the ones located on his chest.

Pulling myself up, I sat upright on my knees, before promptly hugging Astral by his waist, “In that case, stop me if it gets painful for you.”

Giving a light kiss on his cheek mark caused Astral’s body to shudder slightly, but he didn’t object. Good to know. 

Feeling a bit more adventurous, I ran the edge of my fingers along the markings between Astral’s shoulder blades, while simultaneously kissing the skin just above one of the jewels on his neck. Astral flinched in response, a whimper escaping his throat as his arms held onto me. A slight caress of my tongue caused him to yelp out my name. 

I paused just long enough for Astral to speak up, “...It was surprising, but I don't dislike it.”

Seeing him in this state, and hearing these sounds which I never imagined could manifest from Astral awakened an incredibly unusual desire within me. I wanted to learn what the best stimulations to give to each of these erogenous zones of his was, and to witness Astral’s reactions as we found each and every one of them. 

I admit, discovering that his body, despite being so foreign from a human’s, can flutter and yearn from a lover’s caress just like my own, makes me realize that we understood each other a lot more than I could have ever imagined.

Trailing my tongue up the length of Astral's neck caused his back to arch and elicit several whimpers along the way. The whimpers turned into a series of moans and gasps when I sucked gently on the tip of his ear. While I could easily listen to Astral’s moans for hours, that “clicking” from before wasn’t happening now. Was it just a one-off thing then? 

I failed to notice upon taking his ear into my mouth that the tendrils came back to entangle themselves around me. This time, however, one of the tendrils focused entirely on my organ, deciding to mimic the stimulations of Astral’s hand job from earlier.

Like an electric current being completed, the magnetism between us became unbearable to ignore once again. Granted, we remembered to keep mouth to mouth contact brief. Other sensitive areas were fair game, however. 

I could feel myself beginning to peak, but I knew I couldn't let that happen. Not yet at least. 

“Ah- Astral, I want you back inside of me!”

Astral looked up at me through the fervour before the corners of his mouth curled up, as he pulled me close into a gentle hug. Before I knew it, a tendril was back inside me like it had never left. 

I still wasn't used to the sensation, but I knew from the other tendrils currently stroking me that it was possible to get _very_ into it.

With the two of us connected once more, I could no longer hold back.

“I- I'm going to com-”

“It's okay, Yuma. I'm hoping you will,” he replied, the steady stream of his words generating soft breaths against my neck.

Pulling him as close as my arms would allow, my release flowed directly into the tendril caressing my shaft. 

This time I had a direct link to what Astral felt when absorbing it. Like his own sort of orgasm, a newfound surge of excitement poured into me. If it weren't for the fact that Astral had been feeding me his emotions almost the entire time we were doing this, I would have easily been overwhelmed.

_...We really did just make love with each other._

It was a while before either of us decided to move. Eventually, the tendrils receded back into Astral's body without any trace they were ever there. 

In short time, we went to sleep as we'd originally intended.

Ah... the sun's on my eyes. If I don't open them I can sleep in just a bit longer...

Oh wait, I'm in my bed. That's odd... Whatever, I guess. In my half-asleep state, I went to shift myself on to my back, only to discover just how sore I was everywhere.

Ow, the hell? Am I really not that used to sleeping in my bed anymore? No, hold on... there was… something that happened yesterday. I didn't go rock climbing... Uh… there was something with Astral-

My eyes shot wide open. That… happened? I'm not dreaming or anything, right? Taking a quick glance to my right, I spotted Astral resting on his side with his eyes closed.

He doesn't need to sleep, but he enjoys mimicking it. 

Just what am I supposed to say after that? Assuming that all happened. I think it did, but this wouldn’t be the first time I’ve had some really outlandish dream that felt way too real given the narrative. The fact I’m wearing my usual sleepwear doesn’t help convince me it happened, though I think I remember putting them back on after the fact...

I nervously glanced at my right again. Okay, I’m assuming it did happen, at least until I confirm it with Astral. Would it change anything? Hm… Oh, yeah, I guess I wouldn’t need to be as stealthy if I get an erection around him. That’s certainly a plus.

Slowly turning onto my side, I gingerly brought a finger up to poke him on the cheek.

Astral’s eyelids fluttered open, “Oh, you’re awake. Good morning.”

I chuckled, “For now, yeah. I just wanted to ask if, well, last night we…”

“We…?”

My other hand was fidgeting with my shirt, “I guess the term would be ‘made love.’ I’m not sure what else to call it, really.” 

“I’m afraid I don’t quite understand what that means, Yuma.” My heart fell into my stomach. “-If ‘made love’ has a literal meaning behind it, whereby it’s the manifestation of the love between people, then…” His eyes trailed down in thought before his face gained a tender expression. He placed his hand against my own, “Yes, I would say we did.”

Just like that, I was on cloud nine again, “I appreciate you saying that.” I gave his hand a light squeeze before looking away, “Uh, you don’t mind if I go back to sleep, right?”

He closed his eyes and smirked, “You may go ahead Yuma.”

And that’s how I ended up spending the next two hours feigning sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ahh, writing sex scenes are always so difficult for me. I can picture them in my head just fine, but when it comes to putting them into words it's just, "Wait, how do I English again?" I suppose it has been ages since I actually wrote one so it's not like I have much practice under my belt. 
> 
> I ended up drafting this chapter and going on to write 1.5 chapters after it before convincing myself that I need to do actual editing to this one. So... at least the next couple of chapters will be coming out soon, right?? ...Considering I still have summer classes it probably won't be this week, I'll say that at least. 
> 
> For anyone who might be interested in seeing some really good keyshipping fan comics, I can offer the following recommendations (if you have no idea what these numbers mean, look up "6 digit code" on urban dictionary):
> 
> English - 310515, 289997, 263430 (this one is mostly #96 and Yuma, but the keyshipping is implied), 288012 (the weirdest of the bunch, I'll say that much)  
> Japanese - 245494 (I absolutely love "A Bad Thing?"), 217398, 221975, 215302, 215705, 215920, 217435, 218073, 220778, 222425, 226833, 237591
> 
> Mild spoiler: I take *some* inspiration from them, more like general ideas. Considering most of them are in Japanese, and frankly, I'm not rich enough to commission someone to translate them all, I pretty much look at the images and go, "What might be the context behind their actions?" From there, I try to imagine how events led up to that point, and proceed to write. For example, I only got the idea of Astral using tentacle-like appendages from reading some of these stories. In another one Astral would absorb Yuma's """chaos""" for food, and so on.


	6. Second Daybreak

“So, what’s _your_ home world like?”

“Astral World?”

I chuckled at the blue entity’s question, “Do you have a second home world that you forgot about?”

He gave a righteous huff, his earrings chiming together as a result, “I was taught by Astral World’s very will; my memory is without flaw.”

“It’s will, huh? Quite the privilege you’ve been given over there,” I replied with a smirk. My eyes continued gazing up at the cloudless, star-filled sky, before shifting myself over on the rock face to glance into Astral’s pair of resplendent golden eyes, “So, would you say it’s like Earth then?”

“Ah, no, it’s…” his words trailed off as he looked down at the night-filled valley below us, “After they purged out Don Thousand and his Chaos, it’s lost most of its colours.”

My face took on a sombre look as I thought quietly to myself for a moment. “...They really don’t regret their decision, do they.”

Astral stayed silent, he didn’t need to respond; we both knew the answer.

I let out a rough sigh, “Well… it’s not like we haven’t witnessed the harm that rogue Chaos can do. Kinda hate to admit that I can understand their desires. Still…”

“...The fact that they went this far.”

“Yeah...” Closing my eyes I instead focused on the comforting sensation of Astral’s fingers still intertwined with my own. I gave his hand a light squeeze, “I’d hate to imagine our worlds growing so sheltered from the other that we’d never see each other again.”

“Don’t imagine it.”

“Hah?” My puzzled expression was obvious to anyone who might have been watching. Thankfully we were far enough away from most of the tribes living around here.

Astral locked his eyes with my own, our hands now securely connected, “You became an envoy of the Earth while I became an envoy of the Astral World. To walk in each of their people’s footsteps, and find the brightest future for both,” his thumb trailed lightly over one of the scars on the back of my hand. A hint of panic in his voice as he continued, “Please tell me you haven’t forgotten that.”

I couldn’t help but admire Astral’s zeal sometimes. With a warm smile, I did my best to reassure him, “Don’t worry, Astral; it’s just an expression. I haven’t lost hope or the memory of what our purpose is.”

“...our... ...our purpose?”

...Speaking of weird dreams.

“Everything alright, Yuma?”

I looked back towards Astral, who hadn’t seemed to have moved since I woke up earlier. Our hands were still locked together. I guess I ended up falling asleep again at some point, “Hey Astral, did we… have a conversation while I was sleeping?”

Astral’s heterochromatic eyes blinked in surprise, “A conversation? Do you mean telepathically?”

“That or if I was sleep talking, I suppose.”

He shook his head, “I can say that nothing of the sort occurred since you woke up earlier.”

My brows furrowed, “Huh, I must be back at it with these dreams again.”

Astral looked at me curiously, “What was this dream about?”

I thought about it for a moment, “We were... sitting together and talking about Astral World, and…” In my attempts at recalling the dream, I accidentally got reminded of bits and pieces from the night’s lovemaking. My heart started beating faster in my chest from the memories alone, “You… you were worried that I’d forgotten something. At least, I think...”

He tilted his head, an unusually poignant silence emitted from Astral as I recognized that contemplative look of his. Interrupting his own train of thought, he looked back towards me again, “By the way, you’re going to be late if you sleep in any longer.”

My head spun around at breakneck speed to look at the clock, releasing Astral’s hand in the process, “Ah crap! It is later than I thought!”

Sprinting out of bed I was already halfway through changing out of my clothes.

I honestly would have done anything to have the day off from life today. After last night, I really just needed to process everything.

My geography and European history classes went by without me even realizing it, and by the time it was mid-day, going to my anthropology course was just a way to ensure I didn’t miss out on attendance marks. I was more than happy to leave once school was done and over with for the day.

I’ll catch up on the work at home later, I guess. For now, I should get going so I don't miss my appointment.

After packing up my things I left without a moment's hesitation.

Right, getting back to last night.

Let's think here, so we talked about Astral's body modification and emotion-sharing abilities, I experienced his essence for the first time, then we… made out… and… there were all those erotic moans Astral made-

No, focus! This is not the time to be thinking with my dick!

Okay, so, starting with his abilities. It's not like Astral has genitalia, and I can probably assume that the rest of the people from the Astral World don't either. So, the idea of sharing essence being the closest thing to sex for them makes sense… since… they come from the souls of noble humans... I think.

I barely registered that I'd replied with a quick, “Alright, see you later!” as I entered the building and gave my name to the receptionist. There wasn't even time to take a seat in the waiting room before getting called in.

Despite talking with the therapist the whole time, my mind was completely elsewhere.

Then how do they decide who takes care of the children if they don't have traditional parents? I've really got to ask him about that at some point. Ah, but how do they view emotion sharing over there? Is it something that you do with anyone you trust, or do they reserve that sort of thing for only a special someone?

Could… could that mean that… Astral did that sort of thing with someone else…? Shit, no that's… really painful to imagine. God, why do I do this to myself?!

In hindsight, I guess I’ve become accustomed to expecting negative outcomes and preparing myself to fight against them. Joyful moments that don’t immediately follow or precede something awful feel like they've become a rarity, despite that being far from the case.

Even before Astral moved here, we still got to see each other frequently enough, and most of the time we couldn't was just due to bureaucratic stuff Astral had to oversee in his home world. Yet… each time I'd receive news that he'd be free, I'd get an awful sinking feeling in my gut. That something was bound to go wrong.

Admittedly, those baseless fears are the reason I still schedule regular appointments at this office.

“So, you're comfortable continuing our sessions?” Dr. Nozomu asked.

I nodded, “I think it's probably best for the time being.”

“Very well. Next month as usual then?”

“Yes, that's fine.”

After scheduling the next appointment and thanking Dr. Nozomu for their time once more, I scurried out of their office. With lunch hour long since over, the streets of Heartland were fairly quiet, which was good considering I had to try and look around for Astral now.

“He said he'd stay close by but considering Astral can fly that doesn't make it much easier to find him…”

“Yuma, behind you.”

I spun around with a yelp to see Astral hovering just a few feet beside the door of the building. How did I not see him the first time?! I sighed, “Ah geez… Were you there the whole time?”

“I did look around briefly, but this sector of the city isn't that interesting, so I returned early,” he replied as he floated back over to my side.

“...You know it was fine if you chose to stay at home today, right? It’s not like there was anything interesting to learn in today’s classes either.”

Astral shrugged, “Staying by your side is an old habit that I don't see much point in breaking.”

“Sure, but you could get an idea of what life is like for a normal person on Earth, no?” With a slight chuckle, I continued, “Or at least you could watch several hours of ESPer Robin in peace.”

“Watching D.D. ESPer Robin is only my second favourite reason for coming to Earth, though.”

“Then what's the- oh…” Astral's light smirk in my direction was all the answer I needed. “…Now I get it.”

While scratching my cheek in an attempt to hide my embarrassment, Astral continued, “How was your visit with the “psyche expert?”"

“Oh, uh,” his question made me realize just how absorbed in my own thoughts I'd been up until this point, “...it went fine.”

His eyes studied me for a moment before out of nowhere he asked me, “…Would you have preferred a normal life, Yuma?”

“Huh...? Normal how?”

“...One without the dangers that came from being a Numbers Hunter.”

“Oh! Well, yeah…” I still wasn't sure what prompted him to ask that, “It would have been great to just get to know you without any of the life-threatening parts that collecting the Numbers brought with it.” I gave an exhausted smile from just remembering all that we went through to get them back. Sensing Astral's pensiveness, I prodded, “What makes you ask that though?”

He seemed a bit hesitant, but responded nonetheless, “As we agreed from our duel several years ago, you retained all of your memories of our time together, and the events surrounding it. ...Did you ever regret keeping the painful memories, Yuma?”

My hand stroked the back of my neck in thought. It wasn't an easy question to answer, I'll give him that. After thinking about it briefly, I finally had an answer for him, “You remember all those times I got hurt from my failed challenges?”

“I do recall them, yes.”

“It's the same with being hurt mentally. In the moment, it hurts like hell. Even when you're trying to heal and get back to what you normally do, it sucks. Sometimes it can even interrupt your daily life. The important thing is to remember to take care of the injuries, so they don't open up again. They might leave scars, but-”

Wait, why’d I think of scars just then?

“...What I'm trying to say is! Even bad events give a certain perspective on things.”

Astral's expression softened into a brief smile, “In that case, I'm glad to see you've been healing, Yuma.”

It was a bit odd saying it out loud like that, but at least it was to Astral, “Admittedly it was Akari who-” as soon as I said that my D-Gazer began ringing. Pulling it out, I checked the caller ID, “Speaking of… Hello?”

It took a moment for Akari's face to appear on the viewer, “Hey Yuma. Sorry to bother you, is this a bad time?”

“No, what's up?”

“I'm running behind on an article I'm writing for tomorrow. There was an order of mine that only became available for in-store pickup today. If you can run by and grab it, I'll owe you one.”

“Fine, just send me the verification code and I'll grab it on my way back.”

“Thanks, Yuma, sending it now,” and just like that she hung up.

Scrolling through the D-Gazer's functions, I found the mail app and opened the latest text, “Alright, let's see where this is… Oh, that store.”

Astral peered over to inspect the details of the message for himself, “Your sister ordered soup?”

“Heh, no, you'll see when we get there.” I put my D-Gazer away and linked up Astral's hand with my own, “Come on, it's this way!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, that was an unexpectedly long wait time. I had to rewrite certain sections of this chapter along with some of the other chapters a few times over as I kept getting new ideas and realizing other ideas didn't make sense with the canon lore. But at last, here we are. 
> 
> *Now* I'm pretty confident that the next few chapters will be coming shortly, as they're mostly written. Heck, I may even submit the next chapter today if I'm feeling energetic! (Summer classes are coming to an end though, so I may be completely busy with finals in due time...)
> 
> Also, I STRONGLY ENCOURAGE people to go read Observation Number 39 by StellaB (you can find it on several sites, just google it and pick a favourite). It's sooo well drawn, and Astral and Yuma are absolutely adorable in it! <3


	7. Second Daybreak

I gave the cashier the verification number as Astral examined the store confusedly, “...A clothing store?”

“Yep.”

The cashier went to the back room briefly before returning with a package. Astral continued, “But why is it called _Soup?”_

“I haven't the faintest idea. Companies can be weird that way.”

The cashier gave me a puzzled look behind the usual customer service smile she wore as I chatted with Astral. She was probably trying to figure out if I had some sort of earpiece on. Not that it mattered; I'd grown used to these reactions by now. It's not like I was going to stop anytime soon.

After thanking the cashier, I looked back at Astral, and could clearly see the gears turning in his head as he examined the various tags on the clothing. He seemed incredibly certain that he’d find some form of clue behind the store’s name.

It was admittedly cute seeing him like this, but the numerous racks of clothing made this place feel a bit too cramped for my liking, “I'll wait for you outside the store, Astral.”

Stepping out the entrance I was greeted by the expansive architecture of the Heartland Shopping Mall. The mid-afternoon sun shined through the colourful glass interior. The damages it'd once suffered were long since repaired, a dull murmur of people going about their day echoing throughout.

Unfortunately, the white noise of the mall did jack all to stop my thoughts from wandering again.

...There hasn't really been much change in the interactions between Astral and myself. Is there… supposed to be a change in relationships after something like last night happens? It's not like we've had a chance to talk about it, but…

Pulling myself off the coarse ground, I gave a hearty laugh, “Wow, colour me impressed; it’s not every day someone manages to tie with me in a duel!”

The blue-skinned humanoid sat themselves up, a tint of frustration on their otherwise stoic face, “Do you still not remember _anything_ after all that?”

“Can't say I do, unfortunately," I harnessed my duel shield back into place. Glancing back, I noticed the being hadn't moved any further, their gold eyes sullenly gazing towards the earth, "...But at the very least, I can help you back up on your feet,” I replied while walking over to my opponent and raising my arm towards them.

Astral examined me confusedly, hesitant to accept my outstretched hand.

I gave them an understanding smile, “Astral you said your name was, right? Are you not used to an opponent doing this sort of thing?”

“...Admittedly no,” they responded, but still accepted the offer in the end.

Our hands made contact, and I would have expected the sensation of their skin against my own to have reminded me of a river stone; cool and smooth to the touch, yet pleasant. Rather, at that moment, I could only describe it as a bolt of lightning crashing right through us. There was something powerful about it. And... familiar.

Like something, I had lost long ago…

It dawned on me

We _were_ one, once.

And we had a mission we needed to fulfill.

I stared back in awe at the now all too familiar face in front of me, who’s expression now mirrored my own, “What… have I forgotten, Astral?”

“Oh! Yuma! I thought I recognized you!”

Jumping awake, I turned around and caught sight of Kotori approaching from the direction of the food court.

Crap, how much sleep did I lose last night?! I did my best to sound like my usual energetic self, “I'm… surprised to see you here. You don't have classes today?”

She shook her head, “I have an hour between my human anatomy and research methods classes on Fridays. I come by here to grab a late lunch before going back to studying usually.”

I offered her a sympathetic smile, “Well you knew what you were getting into when you wanted to go into health services.”

Kotori let out a bemused snicker, “You don't have to tell me twice. I'm just glad I have the energy for it. Some of my classmates are already dependent on caffeine by this point. …Ironic considering we just learned about its health risks last week.” She paused before glancing around, “Where's Astral by the way?”

"Should be over there still," I replied, tilting my head in his direction. While I was doing my best to sound casual about it, I let out a mental sigh of relief when I saw that Astral was still in the store. Okay, I wasn't knocked out for _that_ long thankfully.

Kotori followed my gaze, equally as confused as Astral had been when first entering the store. Astral on the other hand was still continuing to examine the tags on the different pieces of clothing, “Is he... thinking of wearing clothes now?”

“Uh… heh, if he is, he's done well at keeping it hidden from me.” I remarked cheerily while watching him.

I felt Kotori's eyes glance my way, “Things have been going well between you two, I imagine?” she inquired with a playful shoulder jab to my arm.

Flinching away embarrassedly while avoiding Tori's eyesight, I responded with a bit of annoyance, “Th-things are fine! Don't you have to get going soon?”

She glanced at her watch, “Oh, shoot! My break _is_ almost over," Kotori's eyes darted back towards me like a trained hawk, "I can tell you're hiding something, but lucky for you I do have to get running. See ya, Yuma!” and with that, she took off in a light jog.

I wasn't expecting her to _actually_ be running late, but I guess that worked out in my favour.

It's been years now since I let Kotori know that I could only think of her as a friend, granted she admitted she figured out pretty quickly that trying to get between Astral and myself was a fool's errand. I can say that I trust Kotori with a lot of things, but I'm not sure if it'd be wise to admit to her what happened last night.

Turning back to check on Astral I realized he'd already exited the store. I gave a small smirk his way, “Figured anything out?”

His response was as deadpan as ever, “Companies make decisions which can defy all logic... I will remember this.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A bit of a shorter chapter, but more soon to come. My current estimate is that there will be at least 11 chapters total, all depending on what sort of inspiration hits me along the way. I usually tend to bulk write chapters, as that way I can ensure that chapters X to Y don't have plot holes between each other. 
> 
> I want to take the opportunity to thank the Zexal Discord server by the way. There were quite a few folks on there who helped me with sorting out some of the lore that the anime hints at but never directly states.
> 
> Also, it's Zexal month on tumblr, y'all! ( You can find my blog at https://dualumina.tumblr.com . I tend to post a lot of keyshipping theories/content. )
> 
> One last thing, yes, this is a reference to the Abridged series, Code MENT. I tend to include quite a number of small references here and there, but this is obviously the most "in your face" reference to date. Soup *is* actually a clothing store found in South Korea I think, in case you weren't aware, so it isn't *that* out of left field to see it in not-quite-but-kinda-Japan Zexal takes place in.


	8. Second Daybreak

“I'm back!”

Grandma turned to look towards me from her position on the couch, “Welcome back, Yuma. Have you had anything to drink recently? It's getting hot out there.”

After leaving my shoes by the door, I picked up Akari's package once more, “I'll grab some water after giving this to Akari. Don't worry, Gran.”

She nodded, “Mm, good lad,” before resuming her usual sitcom watching.

“I'll be in your room in the meantime,” Astral added casually.

“No problem, I'll be up in a bit!”

Making my way to Akari's computer room and shifting the weight of the package to one arm, I knocked on the door, "I'm back, sis."

A muffled "Come in," could be heard from the other side.

Turning the doorknob, I was greeted by a wide array of holographic screens hovering around Akari's desk. She paused just long enough in her typing to glance towards me as I entered, "Feel free to put it by the door for now. Thanks, Yuma."

Happily setting it down to rid myself of the extra weight, I glanced back towards Akari, "Just what did you even order for it to weigh that much exactly? Isn't it just clothes?"

"Seven outfits worth of clothes to be precise," she responded, without even looking away from her work.

"Seven?! Why did you even need that many?!"

"When do you think the last time I went out to get new clothes was, Yuma? I've been working full time."

I looked away sheepishly, "Fair point... Alright, I'm closing the door on my way out."

The sound of typing stopped, "Hey, Yuma?"

"Hm? What is it?"

She pushed her chair away from the desk to turn towards me, "I know I'm the one who suggested you start seeing Dr. Nozomu, and you're certainly more than welcome to continue. I just want you to know that it's been almost two years now; if you want to stop… I'll respect your decision."

I gave her a reassuring smirk, "Don't worry, I realize it's been my choice for a while now. Thanks, sis!"

Akari showed some surprise at my gratitude before offering up a smile of her own. She got back to typing as I closed the door behind me.

Making my way to the kitchen for a cup, Grandma called towards me while I filled it with water, “Oh Yuma. I was going to let you know I’m meeting with Yone for supper later. Will you be alright with the udon from last night?”

I turned off the tap, “Yeah, I should be fine. I haven’t been that hungry today.”

She gave me an annoyed look, “Now now, you don’t have to be modest with me. I don’t mind making something before I go so you can focus on your studies.”

“Hey now, I’m telling you, I’ll be fine!" Taking the glass, I called back just before leaving, "Enjoy your time out, Gran!”

She gave a bemused sigh, “Very well, if you insist.”

Getting back to my room, I set the glass of water down on the desk and my book bag off to the side. Astral had already perched himself comfortably on my bed, concentrating on reading through one of my many textbooks from a previous semester.

We're not quite sure when it happened, but at some point, we realized Astral had the capacity to manipulate physical objects to some degree now. Ever since, whenever I have to sink time into studying, he's become determined to make use of that time to catch up with the lessons I had after he left.

I overheard Astral muttering to himself, “…the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree…?”

He's a pretty fast reader, but a lot of metaphors get lost on him, “That’s the sociology book, right?”

“Mm.”

“That means, hmm,” I sat down at my desk, pulling my D-Pad out from my bag, “the apple is usually someone’s kid, and the tree is usually the parent. So, the kid takes after the parent, but it doesn’t always have to refer to two people related by blood. It could mean anyone who’s influenced by another person.”

“That would make sense…” and just like that, he was lost in the world of the book again.

I let out a quiet chuckle as I flipped open the D-Pad onto my desk. After a few taps on the screen, I found the assignment I had to read through. The Birth of Tragedy, excerpt from chapter nineteen. More Apollonian and Dionysian stuff, great…

Sneakily glancing off towards Astral’s direction, he was still very much keeping his eyes glued to the pages, not wanting to miss out on a single detail. That level of concentration… it kind of reminded me of…

No! _No._ I can’t be thinking about last night or I’ll never get any work done! Sighing to myself, I turned my eyes back to the text in front of me and started reading.

After my head broke through the shimmering blue surface, I called out with a laugh, "You know Astral, you really do blend in with the water sometimes. It's hard keeping my eye on you."

Astral floated beside me with ease, his body hardly disturbing the lake's surface, "You're quite the opposite. It's easy to spot you from the bright red dye in your hair." He teased while pushing some of the wet strands away from my face.

I scratched the back of my neck a bit awkwardly, looking away from him, "That's… actually blood that stained it."

Astral's aureate eyes widened at the revelation, "But… it looks fresh."

"Yeah, cause the wound won't close," I responded grimly, lifting the wet hair in front to reveal the corrupted gash in question. "Some bastard with a scythe nearly cleaved my head off. I avoided the worst of it, but all the healers I’ve visited can’t stanch the bleeding completely."

If Astral didn’t look like a spirit before, he certainly did now, "...That's… remnants of Don Thousand's Chaos…"

My blood ran cold as he said that, "...Please tell me you're joking."

It looked like Astral was about to speak up, before stopping himself. His eyes portrayed the contemplation going on through his head in this moment. With a slow and steady sigh, his calm face revealed a hint of resolve, “...I can cure you.”

“You- ...How exactly?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Summer classes are done, at last... I can breathe (and keyship.) 
> 
> 10'000 words of keyshipping!!! And still more to come! :D
> 
> As you may have noticed, I actually went ahead and named the chapters now. Essentially, each chapter on ao3 is about 1k words, specifically so that anyone who comes across it can read it in smaller chunks easier. If, for some reason, I went and published this thing, then the names you see beside the chapters would be the actual chapter lengths. So for example "First Midnight" would all be one chapter.
> 
> Fun fact: this will probably be the first and only chapter I'm publishing in a different city.


	9. Second Daybreak

"...ma? ...Yuma!"

My head jolted back up, "Hah?! Wha- what is it, Astral?"

He had his hand on my shoulder while looking towards me with concern, the textbook tossed aside haphazardly on the bed, "You appeared to be sleeping despite sitting upright. ...This is the first time I've seen you do this."

Glancing briefly toward my reading, I realized I’d somehow gotten through about half of it. Turning back to Astral, I tried my best to play it off, “What are you talking about? You’ve seen me fall asleep in class before.”

“Yes, but you usually don’t do so while at home, _and_ without any prior indicators.”

Now I was starting to second-guess it myself… “Was it really that different compared to how I normally just fall asleep?”

Astral removed his hand from me as he struggled to find the words, “It was… how to put it… you were studying as you normally would. Then… your neck couldn’t support your head anymore.”

...Odd. "...The heat might be getting to me. I'll go- oh, right,” I noticed the untouched glass of water off to the side, “I’m probably just dehydrated. Thanks for the concern though.”

He sighed, “If you say so.” I picked up the glass as Astral peered over the text I was reading, “I’m surprised you’d fall asleep to this; this seems like a delightful read.”

“Heh, it’s very wordy, all things considered,” Glancing down at the glass in my hand, I saw the reflection of my right eye on the water's surface. A muted maroon staring back up at me. I sipped the water while in thought.

...By this point, I really have no idea what’s up with me today. At first, I thought I was just reliving past conversations I'd had with Astral, but… that last one…

I paused my drinking and tugged one of the red strands of my hair down to inspect it. It wasn't uncommon for people in my family to have multiple hair colours, but they usually blended together almost seamlessly. Mom and Akari both have it.

It _was_ peculiar that all my red hairs were just bunched together in the front like that. When I was a kid, Dad used to dye his hair to match mine so I wouldn't feel as self-conscious about it.

Looking back, it was a nice gesture of him.

Pushing my hair back into place, I drank the last of the water.

“Were you done reading this page, Yuma?”

“Huh? Oh, yeah,” I replied, tapping the D-Pad’s screen to load in the next page.

Might as well read alongside Astral. I had to read it anyway.

Hardly a minute went by. “Yuma-”

“What, already?! H-hold on a few seconds…”

I felt Astral smirking in my direction while I continued reading. Despite my disgruntled expression, I brought my hand up to playfully ruffle his hair, causing him to snicker briefly.

After loading in the next page, with a bit of hesitation I asked, “After this, do you want to go eat together?”

He turned to me unexpectedly, “In Zexal?”

“Yeah. Akari will be working all night, and Gran is heading out to eat. So…” Eyeing my fidgeting hand, I continued, “…No one would probably question where I am.”

Without missing a beat, Astral replied, “You know I’d be happy to keep you company, Yuma.”

He really did know me too well. A blessing and a curse, it would seem.

I couldn’t help but smile in response.

“Okaaay, let’s see now…” Crouching in front of the fridge, there weren't nearly as many options as I would have liked.

“What’s wrong with _that?”_ Astral inquired towards the large pot in the center.

“Er, there’s nothing wrong with udon, it’s just a bit… on the plain side.”

“If it’s sufficient to satisfy you, then I don’t see an issue with it.”

“I mean…” my response was painfully drawn out, “you’re the one who insisted we try wasabi the last time we had the chance to do this...”

"And I will remember not to do that again. If it's nothing like wasabi, then I don't see an issue."

I relented, "Alright, sure." Taking the pot out of the fridge I began heating it up. After some searching, I found some utensils, along with an air-tight container large enough to hold a fairly healthy portion of udon.

Zexal tends to require a lot of energy to maintain, so we've learned it's necessary to eat larger portions if there's to be any hope of feeling satisfied after the fact. I only had a light breakfast today, but I weirdly didn’t feel all that hungry. Still, better to be safe rather than sorry and pack more than necessary.

After checking to make sure the udon was hot enough, I filled and sealed up the container, turning back eagerly to check on Astral, who was lost in thought, “All set. You good to go?”

Astral jolted back to reality as he turned towards me, “Oh, yes,” before making our way back to my room.

Hanging the Emperor's Key off one of the climbing holds was surprisingly one of the most effective places for storing it. It's not like anyone besides myself used the climbing wall, at least no one who can get into my room without breaking and entering. It's also safer than leaving it on my desk, where there's a chance I could land there when coming back out of the key.

With a brief chuckle, I piped, "Could you get the door, Astral? My hands are a bit occupied."

"I still need one of your hands to bring you inside," he stated matter-of-factly.

"Uhh... here, you'll have to hold my wrist," I offered up the hand that was clutching the utensils.

"That'll do."

As Astral wrapped his fingers delicately around the base of my arm, his other hand raised itself towards the Emperor's Key. A brilliant flash of yellow light filled the room before we were both pulled into the world of the key, standing on top of the Different Dimension Airship.

The gentle hum from the ship filled the otherwise empty desert world trapped in eternal night. Setting down the stuff off to the side, I took a moment to try and steady the chopsticks on the off chance a sudden gust of wind pushed them off the side of the ship.

I heard Astral speak up, “Yuma, wait.”

Admittedly, I didn't even know if wind existed in here, “What's up?”

“Is it alright if we discuss a few matters, in Zexal.”

Pausing, I turned towards him, slowly, “…anything in particular?”

“I’d like to know, what exactly has been on your mind today.”

There really is no hiding from Astral, is there. My shoulders slumped.

I've known for years he could sense my emotions, but I guess I always kinda hoped that… maybe with enough self-control, it wouldn't be so bad on him.

“...You felt all that, huh?”

He gave a sympathetic smile along with a slight shrug. “Your emotions have a high resonance to them. They can be hard to ignore, even when I try to for your sake.”

I sighed, the corners of my mouth rising slightly. “Sure...” Swiftly getting back up and pointing a finger towards him, I continued, “-but on the condition, we make this quick! It’d be a waste to let the food go cold.”

Astral returned a small grin. “I can agree to that,” he replied, offering his hand out invitingly.

Joining my hand with his own, we pulled each other close. Two halves of a pas de deux, for a private performance we’d practiced too many times to count.

Left leg, right arm, tilt of the neck. …A dance only we knew.

_One, comes two._

_Broken. Bonding. Healing._

_Breathe in, dissolve, don’t look._

_Abandon singularity._

_Energy. Matter. Cleaved apart, weaved together._

_Worlds collide. Worlds apart._

_Found. And reunited. Thoughts that can’t be spoken._

_We are…_

They’re here.

An arm wrapped in ethereal silk stretched before our eyes towards the unearthly sky. Soft radial gold surrounded our form. The golden glow of life itself.

Without all the cumbersome armour in the way, we could enjoy a celebratory twirl in this form. There was no need for the extra protection right now; this was a moment of rest. One which we were more than happy to savour.

Our shared bliss. It has truly been too long.

There's a unique intimacy that comes from sharing a body. Subtle feelings that might be lost in the limitations of language are void in such a state. Granted, it comes with its own unique problems.

_There was much unease throughout the day, wasn't there._

_Yes, relating to... last night._

_Oh? What about last night?_ Astral's consciousness splintered off enough from Zexal to stand as a unique entity within the golden mindscape. _Please, do speak up about it._

Yuma hesitantly brought his own shard into being. ... _How sacred is emotion-sharing?_

_Sacred? It's not reserved for individuals of certain ranks if that is the question._

_Well, no. The question is more… is it treasured. Who is it reserved for?_

_...It can be done with anyone the sharer sees fit, but…_ Astral's direct link with Yuma's red fervour granted enhanced insight into the other's distress. _Why does this question bring such concern though?_

_Well, last night, was that... what happened… was it a first time for both of us?_

A sudden surge of joy and giddiness rushed forth from Astral's otherwise blue calm. In any other context, this mirth might have manifested as an eruption of laughter. _Yes, yes that… that it was!_

Confusion emanated from Yuma. _So why is it so funny?!_

_Apologies._ The blue entity dialled their joy down. _Many television programs had spoken of the importance regarding someone's "first time", yet they never clarified the details._

A trickle of nostalgia lingered for a moment. _To learn that that's what they had been referring to all this time, and to have unknowingly partaken in such a significant event… It is surprising, and perhaps what humans would consider comedic._

Waves of relief originated from Yuma. _...Of course, to have worried over nothing._

_Not nothing, it is understandable to have worried. But, should more worry due to it be expected?_

_It's not impossible._

_Then what can be done to prevent it?_

_Perhaps…_ There was hesitancy, but a kindling elation as well. _If events and experiences similar to what occurred last night… be shared only between the two of us...?_

Astral projected reassurance. _Then consider it done._

_...Alright._ Yuma could only be described as a bundle of inspirited euphoria.

“Let us eat.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally, it's here!!! :D This took so much longer than expected but ahh I'm so giddy over it! Much pride, such accomplishment!
> 
> I wrote the little poem thing for the Zexal transformation while listening to music in the car ride back home. One of the songs which came on was "They're Here" by Dance of the Dead and I thought, "Now that's a powerful line." and found a way to sneak it in. 
> 
> The Zexal scene was so hard to write, oh my god. It took me forever to figure out how to both have a conversation between the two of them while also avoiding using words like "you", "me", "I", "my", "your," and so on. Cause, ya know, they're supposed to be like seamlessly bonded and in perfect sync, truly no longer "you and I", rather "us". 
> 
> *sigh* I suppose it helps that, due to being plural myself, it gave insight on some of the nuances an ability like Zexal would have, such as the whole "not being limited to language" being a big one.


	10. Third Nightfall

Finishing off the noodles, the rich smell of the remaining broth was a delight to the senses. A thin layer of condensation formed on our nose from consuming the last of the warm liquid.

 _Energizing, yet comforting._ Delight echoed from Astral. _We'll need to try more of these "plain" foods._

Setting the container down, we took a moment to simply be. To simply exist. It felt bizarrely natural to be in this state; to be as one, even if it did take an obscene amount of energy to do it.

We exhaled, "Alright. Time to go."

The two of us returned to forms of light before in a matter of seconds reforming into our own bodies.

With a glint in his eyes, Astral spoke up, "Thank you for suggesting that, Yuma. I'm glad to have done it."

"Aw- Astral, you don't have to thank me for it!" My eyes darted away briefly in embarrassment.

"I know, but I wanted to."

I swear Astral's going to give me a permanent blush at this rate. "A-anyway…" It wasn't long before I'd packed everything back up and we returned to my room, luckily for me landing on my feet this time.

Taking the Emperor's Key back, I stopped by the kitchen to rinse off the dishes, with Astral following alongside.

After finishing up and drying my hands off, I glanced up at the grandfather clock, "Ah, I should probably go take a bath, now that I think about it."

Astral looked towards the clock as well, "Very well. I'll go back upstairs in that case-"

Instinctually, I reached out towards him, "Wait, um, if you want…"

He looked towards me with surprise, "...If I want to what? You prefer not bathing together on weekdays, no?"

Since becoming sexually attracted to Astral, I'd made the request that we take fewer baths together, my explanation for it being to help take my mind off courses and such, but, well...

"Normally, I guess… but I've gotten caught up with the workload and after last... night-" I was once again assaulted with flashbulb memories of the taste of his lips, our tongues tracing the curves of one another's bodies, the intermingling of each other's sweat- _Fuck, calm down,_ "I-I figured surely you'd probably want to feel freshened up too, right?"

There was a split second I noticed Astral stiffen at my proposition, which seemed to last indefinitely as I just mentally yelled at myself.

Finally, he leaned in a bit closer than necessary to ask, "And you're sure it won't be an inconvenience for you?"

"Of course it wo-!"

"After all, I did make sure to absorb _all_ remnants of evidence from that time. The surface of my body is as clean and untouched as it possibly can be."

If it weren't for how lustful I got from that sentence alone, I'd question how incredibly specific that wording was, "I'm good!! So, are you joining or not?!"

"I'll join," he beamed.

"Great. Then I'll go get the water running!"

After doing exactly that, I leaned my head on the side of the wooden bathtub in a feeble attempt to calm down.

...I was already starting to regret my life choices.

At least the sound of the rushing water helped drown out my carnal thoughts.

Gently lathering soap into Astral's hair, I was grateful that my condition hadn't worsened. "...You've been awfully quiet."

"I'm processing some earlier observations."

"Hm." I was standing on my knees behind Astral as he sat on the stool beside the bathtub, "How's that working out?"

"...There is much information to be gathered." Despite his eyes being closed, I could tell he was thinking quite a bit.

Running my fingers through the wet hair, it still felt nearly weightless in my hands. Only when fully submerged in water was it clear just how long Astral's hair is, easily reaching the curve of his back.

"Care to share any of it?"

"I will… in a moment…" he said while relaxing into my hands, "Your touch feels nice there."

Hence why I was always more than happy to wash Astral's hair and pat his head, and, well, plenty of other things.

"Hey, Astral?"

"Hm?"

A soft chuckle escaped my throat, "...I'm glad we can touch each other."

I heard the smile in his voice, "Likewise."

Turning on the showerhead, I instructed Astral to tilt his head further back. Massaging my fingertips lightly over his scalp ensured that all the soap suds were properly rinsed off.

"Alright, you're free to get in the bath."

Opening his eyelids to reveal his dual-toned eyes, Astral looked towards me, "But you haven't cleaned off yet."

I waved my hand nonchalantly, "Don't worry I'll take care of that while you’re soaking."

"...But I want to return the favour," he responded innocently.

...What's gotten into him? "That's… certainly a first for you but, o-okay."

Swapping positions, I took a seat on the stool as Astral floated behind me. Within a few moments, there was a thin layer of soap coating my scalp, with Astral's fingers running through my hair.

"It's not painful for you, correct?'

"Yeah, it feels fine."

"Let me know if it gets uncomfortable for you."

"I will." Taking hold of some soap, I began working it over my limbs and other extremities. After a moment, it occurred to me that the lack of nails on Astral's fingers allowed them to glide through my hair with ease.

My breath caught in my throat as his fingers skimmed directly over the various nerve endings of my scalp, "Oh... yeah, so what were those observations you mentioned?"

There was a faint pause, "I should probably start relaying those, shouldn't I?"

Tilting my head up, I furrowed my brows towards him, "Astral, you're stalling."

A grin tugged at the corners of his mouth, "Perhaps. But I will get to them, fear not."

"Agh, fine." I went back to cleaning the front of my body and enjoying the sensation of Astral's fingers in my hair.

"Is it fine if I wash your back?"

"Hm? Yeah, go for it."

Tentatively, his hands traced over the ridges of my shoulder blades.

"There are… many aspects of this world that I have gone out of my way to document and observe."

"...Mhm." I allowed my eyelids to close from the relaxing sensations.

"Subjects that retain my fascination or that continue to puzzle me gain more observations as time passes."

"Makes sense."

Astral trailed his hands over the length of my ribs, "...Despite so many years, you continue to be one of them, Yuma."

I pressed the edge of my finger against the front of my teeth in a meek effort to stay calm, "Uhuh."

He continued past my ribs to caress the arch of my back, in addition to working the base of my neck, "I just can't help but love figuring out what fuels your emotions. It's… captivating."

The only thing I could do was nod. There's no way he's doing this on purpose, is he?

Astral's fingers paused on the edge of my hips and the crook of my neck, "I've… known for some time that my presence can alter them in different ways and that those reactions can change over time."

I felt the smallest remnants of a ragged breath from Astral hit the back of my damp neck. It took everything in me to not let out a soft whimper.

His hands remained stationary on my hips, yet the unmistakable sensation of two fingers tracing the grooves of my back continued, "To know that you experience such a strong emotion and one that is so unique, all because of myself..."

Wait. Two on my hips… two on my- ** _wait._**

"I… imagine it must be unpleasant, in a way. That sort of emotion to be hard to control. All the same, I feel guilty, as despite knowing this I still wish to see more of it."

Opening my eyes again, I glanced back to confirm my suspicions.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> On my tumblr, I made a post about how there will likely be a delay between chapters for somewhere between the next couple of weeks or months. But, in all honesty, this is keeping me kinda sane through this nonsense, so you guys might not even notice it. 
> 
> You might have noticed but I went and edited the tags a bit based on some recommendations I got. Hopefully, that hasn't screwed over anyone's ability to find the work.


	11. Third Nightfall

Noticing I was looking towards him now, Astral abruptly pulled back his hands and tendrils, "Would you rather I not use them?"

"It's not that, it's just-" darting my eyes away, I attempted to cover my exceptionally warm cheeks, before returning to meet Astral's sly gaze, "you're… wait, were you doing that on purpose?"

He averted his eyes playfully, "Testing a theory, would be more accurate."

...So that's what he meant, "Well, it _works._ "

Astral resumed eye contact, his expression softening, "As said before, if it's cumbersome, I can avoid triggering-"

I scowled, still covering my cheeks, "That's not the issue here."

"Then what is it?"

"It's only annoying if I can't do anything to relieve it. Things like what we did yesterday."

He tilted his head, "Despite it also exacerbating those same sensations?"

"Yes... that it does." Astral always did find a way to point out the contradictions in human physiology.

There was a brief silence, as I wasn't quite sure how to continue from here. Admittedly washing the soap off should probably be the first thing.

My eyes fell to the floor as I quieted my voice, "...I _would_ like to do more of those things with you."

"In here?"

I tried responding but failed in the process. _Should_ we...?

"Just… eh… Let me rinse off first."

Astral waited as I hurriedly doused myself off.

"...Okay, but… the only thing is that we can't get the bathwater dirty. My family would kill me if I let that happen…”

The confident smile on Astral’s face was almost terrifying to witness, "I can ensure that."

"Alright, we… we can hop in, I guess…"

The water hardly felt any different against the burning temperature of my skin. Peering towards Astral, he slipped into the water beside me as easily as he glided through the star-filled sky.

Both his body language and the way he looked at me made it clear that Astral was anticipating me to do something. Make the first move, whatever that may be. Just _something_ to get things into motion. 

Honestly feeling like a deer in headlights, I could only manage to rest my head against Astral's shoulder, catching him off guard.

"Everything alr-?'

I responded with an annoyed groan, "Yes, well, I don't know. I'm just weirdly nervous… Maybe it's this location?"

His hand came up to stroke the back of my head, "In that case… would it be better if we started here, but continued in your room?"

Just touching and kissing, I guess that would be okay. I lifted my head, "Yeah, that… I think that could work."

"Then, if you don't mind…" Astral rested his forearms against my shoulders, "I would like to employ some of the things we learned yesterday."

"The stage is your- er, do as you wish." Now's not the time to explain a metaphor.

Astral's fingers traced the edge of my jawline, causing my breath to catch in my throat. His thumb paused just under my lips as he memorized the angle they deviated away from the rest of my face. 

A smile curled onto Astral's face while he drank in my fluster. I offered an annoyed pout in response to the loveable idiot's teasing. Astral forced my pout to disappear by gently pressing down on my chin, causing my lips to part. He joined his mouth to my own and caught us both off guard when there was no "spark" or "click" that accompanied it.

For the first time, we had total freedom to enjoy the experience at our leisure, utterly savouring the moment. The implications of this discovery intrigued Astral, though he ignored his curiosity for now. He'd investigate later.

We still couldn't help our cautious ways; keeping our kisses light and brief, though our mouths were never apart for long. There was a newfound excitement to be had from repeatedly bridging and parting our lips.

I closed the distance between Astral's body and my own, wishing to heighten the euphoria of the moment even more. Astral glid his index finger down the length of my neck, tempting me further into his welcoming embrace.

Our bodies seemed to fit perfectly, even unnaturally, against each other’s. I couldn't even describe how elated I felt.

It was brief, but for a moment amid my delirium, I felt a sliver of guilt. Or perhaps shame from a previous time. 

I lost count of the many times I’d gone out of my way to suppress my desires, fearing that failure would hurt Astral. It wasn't fair to him to be exposed to my yearnings like that, especially, on the rare occasions it was difficult for him to distinguish my emotions from his own.

Astral’s lips stayed apart from my own for a second, “You’re experiencing doubt.”

“Oh,” I didn’t even realize it myself. “This _is_ something _you’re_ into, right?”

The perplexed expression on Astral’s face was admittedly kind of cute, “Similarly to how you introduced me to food, I was not aware of the joys that could be had from these kinds of acts. I assumed that much was obvious.” He narrowed his eyes toward me, “Why do you ask?”

“I was just a bit worried that my feelings towards you were overriding your own, that’s all...”

“Yuma-” Astral cut himself off before smiling nostalgically, his thumb rubbing my cheek reassuringly, “Even if your emotions were strong enough at this moment to do so, they’re not that far off from my own. If anything, your desires are weaker than my own currently,” he remarked flirtatiously.

I sighed in relief, “That’s reassur- wait, they’re **_what?!”_ **

Astral left a peck on one of my tomato-red cheeks, “Perhaps it’s time we get out of the bath, shall we?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A new chapter in both Reading Biology and Key Lime Pie on the same day. Woo! Productiveness! \\(^o^)/
> 
> Oh yeah, for those of you not aware, I started doing keyshipping oneshots that happen before Reading Biology takes place, named "Slices of Key Lime Pie" (it's the only other Zexal story on my user page currently, so it's not too hard to find.) I'll probably avoid putting anything even remotely smutty in the oneshots since the entire point of Reading Biology is that it explores the *beginning* of Astral and Yuma's physical relationship. 
> 
> Key Lime Pie also helps solve a major issue I've been having up to now where I don't want to use exposition all the time, and also keeping to the whole "show don't tell" rule. There's also been a lot of times where I come up with really interesting situations Yuma & Astral might find themselves in, but that it'd be super awkward to try fitting them into Reading Biology. 
> 
> So I recommend you go check it out and consider subscribing to it for any updates if you're enjoying this story so far. I don't really have concrete plans for it; I'll just add to it when I feel like it/get inspired.
> 
> Also, surprise! (but not really) This work and Key Lime Pie are now in a series together! The name for the series was initially a line that was in the Zexal transformation chant/poem, and while I ended up removing it I really liked the idea the line evoked. 
> 
> As explained in the chapter uploaded to Key Lime Pie, the Google Docs app has been messing with me, to the point that it didn't save a bunch of my writing. I had to go and rewrite a bunch of stuff, as a result, hence this chapter taking particularly longer to get out. ; - ;


	12. Third Nightfall

Generally, I'm pretty good at tolerating heat. The attic can become an oven during the summer, but except for some extreme heatwaves, I'm not bothered by it often. That's probably why the rest of my family rarely comes up here, to be honest.

As a result, when I start feeling hot, it's usually due to some extreme circumstances.

Maybe since we just exited a bath, but with Astral hugging my back against him as his numerous appendages explored the front of my body, I was really burning up.

"You feel rather warm, Yuma," he remarked, a tendril coiling and stimulating around the head of my phallus, almost tauntingly.

"Sh-shut up, I know!"

With the two of us sitting on the floor like this, each caress caused my hips to involuntarily buck away from Astral, despite my best efforts.

"...It's difficult to hold onto you when you do that," he mentioned with a tinge of annoyance.

I had to focus to stop my body from twitching while I spoke, "I- can't help it. You're surprisingly good at this."

From the corner of my eye, I could see Astral's contemplative expression, even while he continued his fondling, "I think I have an idea."

"Yeah?"

Similar to last night, Astral weaved several coils around my form, tying our thighs and shoulders together. It wasn't quite the same as when Astral did it previously; back then I could still move around, but now there was a certain degree of strength being used in their grip, restraining me against him.

It was difficult to breathe in this position, but not because my lungs were being compressed. No, Astral’s still being cautious and avoiding my vitals. Rather… there was a strange thrill with being bound to him.

He picked up on my arduous panting, "You can breathe just fine, right?"

"Y-yeah…"

"If it gets taxing for you, let me know."

I nodded. Given my arousal, I probably won't.

Confident I couldn't get away now, Astral upped his game with pleasuring my different erogenous zones, taking his sweet time manipulating each one he discovered. Despite not actively trying to break out of Astral's grip, my body fought against his precise strokes. Whatever Astral learned from our first time, I don't think the human body was adapted for such effective lovemaking.

The mewls coming from my throat raised an octave when I felt Astral's lips on the back of my clavicle. Some rudimentary parts of my brain orchestrated my being to seek out the air in front of me, thinking my most precious ought to be there. Whatever the reason why I have no idea, but there was no mistaking that desperate, yet familiar need to embrace Astral.

I was starting to realize the slight drawback of being in this position. Unless… there’s another way to calm the urge… 

"A-Astral?"

"Yes, Yuma?"

Astral paused his stimulations just long enough for me to speak coherently, "...How many of these things can you make at once?"

"It depends on the length I give them; I'm still limited by my own mass."

Still can't believe I’m about to ask this, "...are you able to make one more?"

"Easily."

"Then bring it over here," I indicated towards my upraised hand.

A tendril found its way into my palm. Pressing my fingers against it, the appendage gave the impression of liquid trapped within a thin barrier, somewhere between silicone and a lake's surface. It felt so delicate, but I knew its fragility was deceiving.

Just beneath the exterior, shimmering energy swirled and coalesced, like someone bottled up the stars of the Milky Way and gave them to Astral to do as he pleased. I could have watched the miniature galaxy for hours. But currently, I had other plans for it.

Bringing the tendril closer, I rested a kiss against the surface, causing Astral to flinch in surprise, "Yuma...?"

My lips parted and I guided the unique feeler beyond the edges of my teeth, finally nestling it against my warm tongue. While nowhere sharp enough to damage me in any way, the tips of Astral's fingers spontaneously tried hooking into my skin, clueing me into what happened.

...Ah, there's the click.

All his limbs grew tight in their holds, and I felt Astral's body trembling against my own. There was a whimper in his voice, "Yuma... I-"

He was restraining himself, especially with the tendril in my mouth. I could feel how much Astral wanted to push it as deep as my body would allow.

I wanted him to as much as he did.

_We'll take it slow, okay?_

The ragged exhale and downward jerk of his head was most likely a nod.

I released my grip on the appendage, letting out a muffled purr as it made its way to the back of my throat. My airflow wasn't compromised, for now at least.

That changed only slightly when I started feeling a weightless elixir pooling in my pharynx, forcing me to swallow repeatedly. My eyelids fluttered as I fought to stay conscious against the rush of emotions.

Wow, that is _a lot_ of enthusiasm. And restraint. It's admittedly impressive, but that restraint was going to figuratively kill both of us.

Turning back to Astral, I begged him with my eyes. _Deeper. **Please.**_

The look Astral gave me likely would’ve been followed by asking if I had a death wish. Ironic coming from him of all people…

I did my best to smile around the tendril in response.

He furrowed his brow ridge, "...Signal me if it feels unsafe."

A quick nod and Astral immediately probed deeper into my throat. I encouraged him by absorbing all that I could, using my muscles to massage and stimulate him just as Astral did to me.

The shuddering of his body in response was too sweet to enjoy, but his soft coos were driving me mad, "Oh Yuma…"

Astral's gasps were all the encouragement I needed, but he went so far as tightening the tendril encircling my dick, quickening his tempo. _Damn it, at this rate I'm going to-_

I was caught off guard by the single word whispered into my ear, _"Please."_

That was the last straw needed for me to utterly melt in Astral's grasp. He continued holding me close as our instinctual responses took control of each other.

Finally, a wink of stillness passed, my limbs and throat were finally freed. I rested my head on Astral's shoulder while catching my breath slowly. He kept me securely in a hug, our breathing eventually synchronizing.

I felt his hand come around to clutch my own. There was a gentle, steady vibration coming from somewhere within Astral. ...Odd I never noticed it before, but I guess it's not every day I have my ear against him.

It was only a matter of minutes before the pain suppressant effects of the endorphins in my system dwindled to the point of ineffectiveness.

"...Fuck I'm sore."

Being so close to Astral's neck, I could hear his suppressed chuckle, "Understandable."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Look, I- I have no idea how I'm suddenly able to write smut this good. It just... it just *happened,* okay?? . _ .
> 
> [I'm lowkey convinced that I unknowingly made a sacrifice to some dark god and I just haven't realized what the sacrifice was yet... 👀]


	13. Third Nightfall

I released a drawn-out sigh, lamenting my sore muscles and enjoying the night scenery.

Astral on the other hand, a bit less so, "...Explain to me why you thought it was a good idea to climb onto the roof, given your current physical state?"

Resting my head against his shoulder, I closed my eyes as the night breeze tousled my hair about, "My body's still hot, I need to cool it down somehow."

Astral fidgeted ever so slightly in my arms, "And you don't suspect my body against yours is hindering relief provided by the cold air?

"Argh, can it with your logic and enjoy the moment, why don't you," I grumbled back.

His hand squeezed my own, there was a smile in his voice, "I suppose that is doable…"

Soft sounds of insects chirping away muddled with the odd car off in the distance. Amide it all, the gentle and subtle pulse humming within Astral strangely felt the most familiar.

He spoke up once more, "Do humans usually have an equivalent to what we did earlier?"

"Pfft, no, definitely nowhere that extreme." Opening my eyes again, the horizon of Heartland City shimmered off in the distance, "You'd probably see that sort of stuff in fiction, or with special effects in movies. Human sex is generally pretty boring."

Astral looked back towards me, "I was under the impression you weren’t experienced in those sorts of things."

"Ah no, you're correct, but I've watched um… videos featuring re-enactments of sex. ...Kind of a lot of them, actually... heh. So, I have a general idea of it."

He perked up at that last part, "Oh, you have? I don't recall you doing so."

I looked sheepishly off to the side, my arms shifting to hold Astral just a little bit tighter, "...I only watched them when you weren't around. After you left, I mean."

That caused him to go quiet briefly. "...Is there... something concerning them that you didn't want me to know?"

"Well I- mmm…" That was admittedly a question I feared for the longest time, "A lot of the things I saw I wanted to do with you, or at least I imagined doing them with you. But I knew your body wasn't like that of a human's."

I could tell he was listening, albeit staying silent.

"It's a human thing, to fantasize about possibilities even if you know they will never happen. There were a lot of scenarios I imagined, but few of them were realistic given our circumstances. So I just… never said anything."

There was a soft sigh, "...If I understand correctly, you're implying this went on for several years, at _least._ Why allow it to drag on so long?"

"I was happy with what we had! I didn't want to bring in something that could have… That could have damaged our… relationship." Even if I fought against Eliphas’ words when I duelled him, in his own rigid ways, he was right about some things… as much as I hated admitting it.

"Happy… yet yearning." Astral’s head tilted back to look at me, "Wasn’t that painful for you?"

"It…" I sighed in turn, "Yeah, it was kind of painful…"

Astral crossed his arms, returning to his default ruminative self. After some time of studying the patterns in the stars, he spoke up, “Then we have a lot of time we need to make up for, Yuma."

My head twitched up, "Ha- uh. Wait, care to explain what you mean by that?"

"It's simple; our mission now is to accomplish as many of these re-enactments as possible."

 _"Woah_ , hold on. I know you're off duty and all, but it's not like I want to try out _all_ of them! Most of them were just… They seemed interesting at the _time..."_ A time when I was desperate to quell the lust that just… always came back.

That seemed to partially satisfy him, "Then tell me about the ones you _do_ want to try, ignoring potential limitations from my physiology."

I relented, "Alright, let me think for a second…"

It's not every day someone asks what my sexual fantasies are.

"I guess there was-"

Oh? Hm...

There's been a change. Yes.

But they can't see it yet...

Tears will be shed...

Intervention is necessary. Lest their futures carry sorrows.

"Fascinating. So despite it being an activity which normally requires nudity, there are variants that encourage the use of clothing?"

Fuck, did I really- did I really just blank out while talking? "Y-yeah, um, there are some people who pay ridiculous amounts of money for clothing to wear during sex. There’s a lot of different types, some that look pretty normal and some really weird ones, like animal-themed costumes even."

Astral thought for a moment, "I don't have much of a preference for any of the creatures living in your world. Horses are intriguing, but mostly due to their similarities to you.”

A bout of nervous laughter escaped me, "Those animal suits aren't exactly my thing either! Plus, I don't have the money for something that extreme…"

"In that case, you mentioned something concerning other objects as well. Did any of those retain your interest?"

...Please let that memory lapse be a one-time thing tonight... "Yeah, but it's possible your tendrils can do what most of those items could do anyway."

"I suppose it's possible, the form I give them isn't exactly limited to..."

Perhaps it’s a blessing.

The chance to live among them!

But Time was made singular. Thus, haste grants more chances.

And yet with two worlds... Two chances to learn!

“...elongated cylinders. It is simply the shape that’s easiest to maintain.”

“That’s… good to know.” I could hear Astral’s words, and my own, but I was also hearing… something else.

Heh yes, already learning is occurring. / Change is slow but steady.

Different selves. // For different experiences.

New memories. / / And new emotions.

“...Is the cold getting to you, Yuma? You seem to be shivering-”

“It’s…”

Ah, but to cleave a soul… /

/ It's a temporary separation.

Yes, now is the time to act. /

/ And time for new life!

“...possible, yeah.” Pulling my hand back, I wiped away some moisture that’d accumulated in my eyes, “We should probably head back inside.”

I don’t know what’s happening. I can’t say for sure this isn’t Astral’s voice that I’m hearing, or my own. But something’s off about it. Like it’s too far back in my head to hear clearly. In either case, it’s dangerous for me to be on the roof in this state.

Astral floated back up, “Do you think you’ll manage to get back inside alright?”

 _I sure fucking hope I do,_ “Just keep an eye out, if you will.”

He nodded, keeping watch as I cautiously found my footing along the steep incline. Pinching my lip with the edge of my teeth might not have been the best idea in the world, but that small bit of pain at least kept my thoughts grounded, which I sure as hell needed at this moment.

With a final lunge through the attic window, I thanked forty separate gods the instant my feet touched the wooden floor.

Astral on the other hand floated back inside with the ease of a hummingbird.

...Show-off.

Turning around so I could close the window behind him, the reflection on the surface showed Astral lovingly gazing back towards me.

I smiled in turn before my eyes widened. ...Astral doesn’t have a reflection. Then what…?

Rubbing my eyes did nothing to get the image to fade. Studying it closer, I realized the lower half of this Astral's body was obscured by something similarly blue. Is that supposed to be water…?

Revealing his hand, the image of Astral gently rested it against the right side of my face, or at least, that's what I saw. Not necessarily felt.

Wait- **_this scene-! It's the dream!_**

Following the illusion’s lead, I witnessed as a vision of my own hand similarly rested against his face, our forearms crisscrossing to form an X-shape.

“...Yuma? Do you not wish to sleep just yet?”

After closing his eyes, the illusionary Astral’s form began to twinkle and shine like a newborn star. Particles of light danced off the surface of his skin, a sense of calm washed throughout my body while watching this all unfold.

“Just, um... I’ll be there in a second...” Dragging my eyes away from the window, it was a shot in the dark but, perhaps seeing the real Astral, _my_ Astral, floating right there in the attic would make this weirdness go away. Instead, my mind fell further into turmoil; the two Astrals were now both in my view, each one only aware of their respective settings.

**_Just what the hell is happening?_ **

With the two of them side by side, the differences in their appearances were plainly obvious. The younger Astral in the left half of my vision had a body that was flawlessly blue, from what wasn't hidden by water at least, and his eyes shared that same subtle golden colour. Whereas my Astral on the right possessed patches of bright white light emitting from various locations along his form. Including one of his eyes.

The left Astral stopped glowing quite as brightly, but the right side of his body remained a luminescent white in some areas. After he opened his eyes, I saw that the right one was now similarly white.

Apart from the difference in age, the two Astrals looked identical now.

This must be from someone’s memories, no? But why am I seeing this now? Or maybe more importantly, why am I seeing a vision from Astral’s past but from someone else’s perspective...?

Hell, whose memories even are these?!

The younger one gave a warm smile. Pushing illusionary bloodstained hair out of the way, my vision of the past suddenly became a lot clearer, more tangible.

Somehow, I knew that this was the first time "I" was seeing this Astral with both eyes.

Younger Astral spoke up by this point, "I gave you most of my ability to suppress corruption. Eliphas didn’t want to take any chances and effectively made me immune to it. But you’re in need of it more than I am right now." He shrugged, "Besides, I can still resist it, to some degree.”

My vision changed; now I was peering down into the water, "my" reflection staring back up at me. A crimson red eye on the left, and a soft blue replacing the right.

My blood ran cold. It can't be-

I turned back to the real Astral, refusing to let this conundrum go on any longer. I just needed an answer, _any_ answer. "Hey, Astral?! I know this is sudden, but eons ago in the past, did you ever…" How do I even ask this is the real question? "Did you ever tie with someone in a duel?"

His eyes widened and his mouth fell agape, before looking away. With a quiet reply, "...Yes, exactly once."

So I am right! These _are_ visions! "Great! Can you tell me more about who they were?"

My enthusiasm drained the moment I saw Astral's lip quiver. "I… don't enjoy thinking back on that time. I'm sorry, Yuma…" he looked back up and gave a strained smile, "What matters is the present; we're both here now."

What- "...Yeah-"

What does that even mean? "-I guess you're right."

The sympathy was clear in his eyes, “It’s been a long day, it would be wise to rest, I would think.”

I vaguely recall nodding in response.

But why…

While the two of us settled into the hammock, I couldn't help ruminating over the next question I was dying to ask...

Why did "my" reflection look like Don Thousand…?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ahh, and so the plot begins in chapter 13. Would you believe me if I said that wasn't intentional, hue?
> 
> My move is finally over and done with. There are a few things here and there that need to be taken care of, but they shouldn't delay the next chapter by too long. Apologies for the long wait with this chapter, everyone!
> 
> Also, yes, sadly this fluff and smut keyshipping fic *does* contain a plot, if you can believe it.
> 
> Oh! Another thing! My lovely friend shif drew fanart based on chapter 12! (NSFW obviously) https://shifuto.tumblr.com/post/629926699368333312/yuma-i-deeper-please-a-scene-from


	14. Fourth Flare

I wasn't even aware I woke up. My eyes just sort of… refocused on my surroundings at some point.

My gaze lingered on the being seemingly sound asleep beside me. With the two of us huddled together in the hammock, it was easy for me to examine his face like this. Notably, the unmistakable clear light that emanated from the right side of his body.

Giving up a part of himself caused it to appear… yet I've seen Astral come back from the brink of death unscathed. More times than I would have liked, at that. I'll admit it's not like I ever asked him about it, and until meeting other people from his world, I assumed it was something they all had.

I sat up while my mind cycled through the events of the visions I'd had up until now. Finally, I shook my head.

There's no way Astral did all those things with Don Thousand, I refuse to believe it! They were enemies for so long after all.

Yet… who else could that reflection have belonged to? That hair, those eyes… they were unmistakable, even if their face looked so young. Like that of a teenager's, if I had to guess.

Aaagh, damn it, Astral! Not knowing is messing with my head! You'd think I'd eventually get used to things like this happening, but guess that's not the case…

Concluding I wasn't going to get any more sleep at this point, I pulled myself out of the hammock, doing my best not to disturb Astral in doing so. Just from looking out the window, it was probably 5 maybe 6 AM. Ugh, what to do now is the question?

I would like to get more answers, but I can't control these visions in any way. Or at least, I don't know how yet. I'm used to imagining different possibilities for the future, but the past is completely out of my domain.

It's ironic, considering Astral is the most experienced person I know when it comes to dealing with haphazard memories. But I get the feeling that the conversation will be as painless as pulling teeth once I mention what the visions have been about...

Actually…

I think I might know the right people to talk to about this!

Shark finally answered the call after a few seconds, "Yuma, this is rare. I didn't know you even got up this early."

"I've been waking up early the past few days. But I needed to ask you something."

He smirked, pulling a cup of coffee into view, "Hmph, you're lucky I start work later today. What is it then?"

I leaned against the exterior of the front door before continuing, "Regarding the visions Rio gets, is there a way to control them, or just force them to happen?"

Shark stopped before he could take a sip, "...I really hope you have a good reason for asking that question."

"Agh, fine; I'm almost certain I've been getting visions of my own. Granted, I have no idea whose memories I'm seeing, and there are other things that have left me with more questions than answers."

"...Alright. I'm guessing it hasn't been that long ago since they started?"

I nodded, "I noticed it yesterday. They were unique enough that I'm confident I've never had anything like them before."

"It's not impossible you'd be getting them this late in life ...though it is weird." He looked down in thought, "What have the visions been about?"

"The first few seemed to be Astral and myself just talking, but then I started noticing details and events that never happened to us, like several scars on my body, and one of my eyes was corrupted by Don Thousand. But one vision showed Astral using his energy to fix it."

Shark narrowed his eyes at me, "...I'm gonna take a guess that you haven't told Astral about this yet..."

"Hey, they only started yesterday, and it was only later that night I started thinking something was off! And well..."

His impatience was evident from the cocked eyebrow, "And _what?"_

"I tried asking him about one of the events I saw, but Astral said he'd rather not talk about it."

"And so, your backup plan was to get the answers yourself..." Shark uttered while pinching the bridge of his nose. "...How many visions have you had up to now?"

"Uhh… Four, maybe five?"

Shark's face turned deathly serious, "And they _all_ happened yesterday?!"

"Yes…?" I guess that's more than what Rio gets?

It looked like he just lost five years of his life, "For fuck's sake, Yuma… Wherever Astral is, go there and talk to the guy. He should have all his memories back by now, shouldn't he? If there's anyone who will have answers, it's _him!_ The whole thing with fixing a corrupted eye, there can't possibly have been that many people he did something that specific for."

Shark made one last attempt at drinking from the mug in his hand, briefly uttering, "I'm calling bullshit if he claims he doesn't remember doing it..."

With a bit of hesitation, I responded, "Sure, but wouldn't the Numeron Code have changed events like that? Anything related to Don Thousand, I mean."

The coffee cup was set down brashly, clearly given up on by this point, "Yuma, you realize when Astral used the Numeron Code, he didn't change the past; he fixed the _present_. All the stuff that happened to me and the other former Barians still happened! Hell, maybe Astral couldn't even affect the past, or maybe he could have but he knew it would cause a time loop."

I nodded tentatively, "...You bring up a good point."

Shark let out a gruff sigh, "Point being, you're probably seeing visions from someone's past life. That's my guess, at least, and no matter what happened in the past, the Numeron Code hasn't changed anything about it. Just fucking talk with Astral."

He took a moment to calm himself, his brows furrowing while looking down, "As for why it's happening now… As much as I hate to admit it, even if the ordeals we faced were straight-up supernatural, you and I were still human when the dust settled. That kind of shit takes its toll at some point." Shark returned my gaze, "Maybe this is how it's catching up finally."

By now I knew how those events had affected me, but I didn't want to say anything on the subject. I couldn't allow myself to worry Shark like that.

Picking up on my silence, he continued, "Hey, you want me to go ask Rio about this? She'd probably have better advice for figuring this out."

"Oh! If she's available, then definitely!"

"Fine." Getting up from his seat, I saw the scenery around him shift as Shark made his way down a hallway. There was a knocking.

"Hey Rio, are you done yet? Yuma's on call."

It was hard to make out but there was a muffled reply regarding a zipper.

"Ugh, are you serious? Why do you keep buying from that store if it's- fine, I'll help out, just talk to Yuma afterwards." Shark turned back to the device, "Wait a moment."

Several minutes passed without anyone on the other end, though I could hear a conversation taking place from somewhere nearby. Eventually, Rio appeared, her brows already furrowed, "Yuma, while it's nice to hear from you again, I can't say I'm a fan of the summary I got from Ryoga."

I looked off to the side briefly as she continued, "I don't want to jump to any conclusions without asking some questions first. So, can you think of any major events that happened recently that could have accounted for the change?"

"Ah- uhh…" Shit, they really _did_ start after Astral and I had sex, didn't they? "I mean, perhaps…"

Rio's eyebrows perked up, "Oh, private stuff. Is that it?"

I sighed in relief, "Yeah, pretty mu-"

"No worries, I understand," she looked off to the side, before continuing with a firm voice, "Ryoga! Leave the room!"

I heard Shark from off-screen, "Wait, what?! At least transfer the call to your own D-Gazer-"

"Stop being selfish, it's for Yuma's sake!"

There was a groan followed by a door slamming. Rio was unphased, "Alright, go ahead, Yuma."

This was not the outcome I was expecting. "Uhh, a-alright. To break it down…" It'd be too suspicious if I tried to back out now, "Astral and I got closer in our relationship."

"So you achieved a new Zexal form?"

"N-not quite, no."

"Did Astral tell you something about his past?"

"Well yes, but only after the visions started."

She tilted her head, thinking to herself, before stifling a chuckle, "Alright. Hopefully, things go well on that front. Can you tell me anything you know about whose perspective the visions were coming from?"

I'll be pissed if it turns out Rio can read my thoughts as well… "I don't remember that much, but their clothing had a lot of colourful beadwork, there were several scars that covered their body, and the obvious fact that they were human. They… also looked identical to Don Thousand." I laughed briefly, "But you probably knew everything there was about the guy, so that couldn't possibly be-"

Rio interrupted me, her concern elevated, "Yuma, this might come as a shock to you, but until he was freed, the other Emperors and myself had limited contact with him and even less knowledge about his past." She paused, her expression souring, "The exception, of course, being Vector, but in any case…" Her face relaxed while looking back to me, "I imagine you're still keeping your distance from him?"

"I do what I can, at least. Vector hasn't really gotten in my hair lately."

"If that ever changes, let me know. I need an excuse to practice my boxing techniques every once in a while," she replied with a bit too much enthusiasm. "Getting back on topic, however; from both my own knowledge and with what I've been told, we know for a fact that Don Thousand was originally from the Astral World. Astral was present in all of your visions, correct?"

"Yes, that's right."

"Remember, Yuma; Astral came to be in order to get rid of Don Thousand after becoming a Barian. By that logic, even if Don Thousand was human before he was an Astral being, Astral theoretically didn't exist at the same time. It's not much, but that evidence alone is enough to conclude that whoever it is, these memories are not Don Thousand's."

After taking a moment to think it through, I nodded, "Yeah, all that makes sense." I nearly figured to thank Rio and hang up before remembering the original reason why I called, "Oh! But do you know of any way I can control these visions, or maybe force them to happen?"

Rio's calm demeanour was overshadowed by genuine confusion, "You… want to have _more_ visions than what you've had up to now?"

"The sooner I get the next visions the sooner I can get more answers!"

"I suppose that's one way to look at it… In my case, I had most of mine while in the hospital. It's not like I was doing much else besides being unconscious, but it still wasn't a fun experience. Maybe try taking a few naps throughout the day, practice some meditation?"

"Oh, great idea, Rio! Thanks for the help-"

"Hold your horses, Yuma!" Rio's expression turned frigidly serious, "We can't ignore the possibility that these visions aren't just a one-off fluke. Maybe your relationship development with Astral was just a coincidence, and there's something else at work here. Call us immediately if something suspicious happens. Ryoga and I have your back, is that clear?"

"Ah… Alright."

"I have to finish preparing for class, but is there anything else you wanted to mention?"

"No, I think that about covers it."

Rio nodded with a smile, "Talk to you soon, Yuma!"

With that the call ended, a black screen reflecting back towards me.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ryoga endured thorough torment from the Baby Shark song, as such he's been forced to learn patience. Rio, using her position as student council president, ensured the song played at as many school events as possible. /s
> 
> Not much to say about this chapter, honestly. It's one that I'd had in the works for a while. Something about Shark never getting the chance to drink his coffee and Rio asserting her big dick energy while Yuma helplessly watches in the hopes of getting advice was just too good to pass up. Also, a certain store makes a cameo appearance, heh.


End file.
